Leyla Fern King, a high school sophomore in St. Louis, Mo., was asked by her mother this week what she thinks about Brett M. Kavanaugh: If he was guilty at 17 of sexually assaulting a girl at a party decades ago, should he still be held accountable?

“He should,” said Ms. King, who is 15, “because you’re definitely supposed to know right from wrong by my age.”

.. teenagers across the country said in interviews that they were disturbed to see so many adults dismissing the accusations against Mr. Kavanaugh

.. They recognized the scenario outlined in Dr. Blasey’s allegation — a drunk teenage boy taking advantage of a girl at a house party. And in the backlash against Dr. Blasey, a research psychologist in California, the teens saw the way girls are often criticized for calling out mistreatment.

.. she worried that if the Senate does not take Dr. Blasey’s allegations seriously, it will reaffirm the idea that “boys will be boys,” and teach a dangerous lesson to teenagers today.

“Boys will learn that what you do in high school won’t affect your future at all, so go do the damage you need to do now,” she said.

Ms. Wieczorek said she sees in the controversy a double standard for men and women’s behavior that is already well entrenched in high school.

.. Emma Thatcher, a high school student in Florida, tweeted: “I would just like to say that the emergence of this whole ‘teenage boys should get a pass because they’re not mature enough to understand consent’ narrative is probably one of the most unsettling things I have ever witnessed.”

.. three-quarters of girls 14 to 19 said they felt judged as a sexual object or unsafe as a girl.

.. Sexual harassment remains part of the culture at parties

.. The language being used by a lot of Republicans is eerily similar to the way boys sound in high school.”